Oregon-Washington State: No Excuses, No Respite

I hesitate to come up with catchy names for my articles now, because last week’s became strangely prophetic. The answer to the question was the Boise State Broncos.

Oregon seemed to have all their Ducks in a row. They survived a scare against Purdue, but they were returning to Autzen to finish up their non-conference schedule and would get a warm-up game against WSU in Pullman before Roper came back to lead them into the Coliseum.

The problem was that Boise State had plans of its own.

It is extremely tempting to make excuses for the Ducks after last week. They lost their second-string QB to a late hit from the Broncos; Walter Thurmond III wasn’t playing; if they had made a field goal and their two-point conversion, they would have been able to force overtime.

But make no mistake; Oregon just flat-out got beaten by the Broncos. Thurmond didn’t play, but Talmudge Jackson III (has there ever been a college team with two “the thirds” who had playing time in the secondary before?) certainly didn’t lose the game for the Ducks.

You can talk about field goals, but Boise State also missed one. Let both kickers be perfect and Oregon still would have lost by two. Failing the two-point try wasn’t a gaffe by the Ducks; the Broncos were ready and able to defend it.

Put the could’a, would’a, should’as aside. For three quarters, Boise State simply out hustled, out muscled, out coached, and out executed Oregon in supposedly one of the toughest venues for visitors in college football. By the time the Ducks started airing it out it was too little, too late.

Boise State’s coaches went max protect to prevent the Ducks from getting a consistent pass rush and used movement and unusual formations to create mismatches that neutralized Oregon’s playmakers in the secondary.

Kellen Moore played a superb game, and he and his receivers made the most of their opportunities to carve the Ducks defense into deli-thin slices.

Oregon didn’t prepare well enough to deal with Masoli’s injury. Chris Harper never looked comfortable on passing plays (though an aggravated rotator cuff injury certainly didn’t help) and the play calling was entirely one-dimensional.

Boise State loaded the box to keep the Ducks from being able to drive down the field with runs up the middle. The Broncos also used their defensive speed to keep plays from being made on the outside. When the Ducks were desperate enough to change QBs, the score made the offense one-dimensional with passes.

Despite all the issues the Broncos exposed, the Ducks head in to Pullman as heavy favorites. The Cougars have had issues with QB injuries as well and haven’t even looked competitive against most of the teams they have played. The offense has struggled in all phases and the defense has allowed nearly 40 points per game.

The prognosticators seem to believe that the Ducks are just too talented for the Cougars to keep up with, even at home. But if Oregon’s execution doesn’t improve by leaps and bounds from last week, Washington State is going to have every opportunity to win this game.

Special teams have been a disappointment so far for the Ducks, despite Jairus Byrd’s touchdown against the Boilermakers.

Matt Evenson has struggled at kicker this season, and must improve his technique to get back to his 2007 form. There will be close games this year, and Oregon needs to be able to win off a field goal if that is what it takes. Right now, such a situation would look bleak indeed.

The defense has talent enough to keep up with almost anyone, but they have not tackled well at times and looked utterly lost against the Broncos.

It doesn’t matter how good the Ducks defenders are if they are out of position against the playmakers on the opposing offense. Nick Allioti and his staff need to focus on improving their players’ ability to make adjustments on the field and ensure they line up against the proper man.

On offense, it all comes down to balance. The Ducks need to be able to choose runs and passes based on the down and distance, not what won’t produce a turnover. That means they need to find consistency at the quarterback position, more easily said than done with the string of injuries.

Darron Thomas was nothing short of heroic for a true freshman facing his first game time in the fourth quarter last week. Masoli remains ahead of him on the depth chart, but if he struggles on the road, how long until the Duck’ coaches yank him for Thomas?

With the redshirt officially gone, Oregon might as well try to get as much out of the impressive looking young player as they can this season.

Last week’s loss was the kind of domination that can turn a season on its head. If Oregon learns from their mistakes against the Broncos, they can still pull off a great year.

But if they let their confidence go, if they let Boise State help the Cougars beat them in Pullman, the situation becomes bleak indeed for a successful run in the Pac-10.

If Washington State wants to pull an upset they would do well to copy Boise State’s strategies. Use max protect to buy time for the quarterback and move tight ends and running backs around to create mismatches against the Ducks' linebackers in the passing game.

On defense, load the box to stuff Jeremiah Johnson and LeGarrette Blount and take your chances with Oregon’s rotating quarterbacks and inconsistent receivers.

With the Cougars having their own issues to address, I expect the Ducks' overall talent edge will be the difference in this game. But if Washington State starts executing and Oregon relapses into the form they showed through three quarters last week, make no mistake, there is a very real danger of an upset.

One loss to a team they were supposed to beat the Ducks can deal with, but two could start a downward spiral that ends at the bottom of the Pac-10 standings.

MY VERDICT: Oregon Ducks 24, Washington State Cougars 20